


Don't take my Spot!

by Only_Here_for_JatP



Series: This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things [2]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Pillow Fights, cuddle piles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:21:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26881345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Only_Here_for_JatP/pseuds/Only_Here_for_JatP
Summary: Julie and the boys settle in for a movie night where Julie begrudgingly agrees to share her spot with Luke, as long as he doesn't take it.
Relationships: Alex & Julie Molina & Luke Patterson & Reggie, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Series: This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949521
Comments: 28
Kudos: 356





	Don't take my Spot!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!
> 
> So fun fact, this is actually a situation I was in once with a crush except for the whole two extra band mates thing. Anyway, small touches have always been my favorite and I like hesitant Luke was weighing on me so here we are.
> 
> Also, I don't know if y'all can tell that I avoid writing dialogue like the plague in my other stories, but I'm trying to get better at it.
> 
> This seems like a disaster note- just go and enjoy the story! I love y'all <3

It’d been a week since the show at the Orpheum where Julie saved the boys and gained the ability to touch them. She couldn’t really tell who was most excited about everything that had happened since then. 

It could’ve been Carlos who immediately started bonding with the boys upon confirmation of their existence. Alex and him would watch tv shows together, sprawled out on the couch, and chatting even though Carlos still could not see or hear Alex. Reggie and Carlos would play video games and somehow the added competition of being able to mess with each other’s controllers without intervention added a level of difficulty to their racing games. Luke and Carlos engaged in some new pranks and Julie admittedly had been ready to kill both of them when she woke up to the sound of her least favorite song blaring through her alarm at 3 am on Saturday Morning.

Reggie was definitely in the running for the most excited since everybody agreed that with the new development it was time to tell Ray about the new additions to their family. Surprisingly enough, Ray took it in stride. He’d been a little suspicious once she started to get a good look at their faces, after all Rose hadn’t been the only Sunset Curve fan in the house. He figured his daughter would let him in when she was ready, and he’d been anxious to meet the boys himself. He took time to bond with all of them, but he had a huge soft spot for his eternal companion Reggie. To say Reggie was thrilled would be an understatement and it was becoming increasingly difficult to separate the two.

It could’ve been the band in general who was most thrilled about the new arrangement. They were tactile ghosts after all and preferred to have as much contact with each other as possible at all times. Now that they could add their additional band member to the list, there was rarely a moment when at least one ghost boy wasn’t touching her. They’d even started popping into school in the middle of the day just so they could be in contact and do whatever version of a nap ghosts were capable of. Luke had been the touchiest of all of them, but more than just being in contact with her for longer he would touch her differently than her other band mates. He’d play with her hands or hair or slide his hand across her back when he moved behind her at the piano or in the kitchen. 

They still hadn’t addressed whatever was between them and besides their tight hug the night of the Orpheum they hadn’t been that close or… intimate. It wasn’t quite avoidance, more like hesitation on both sides. She knew that she was just as bad as he was, but somehow her brain still wondered if she’d imagined everything between them. Maybe he didn’t feel anything.

It didn’t really matter though, because she was just as excited as her boys to be able to reach out and touch them. She’d been so worried about them disappearing, it meant everything to her that she could reach out and physically reassure herself that they were here and okay. She loved the group hugs she could get before heading off to school or playing with Reggie’s hair as they sat and watched Luke and Alex’s antics, or being able to hold Alex’s hand when he was feeling anxious. She tried not to think about all the ways she could touch Luke, but when she had a bad day at school being able to lean on him, literally, went a long way to improving her day.  
Yeah, everyone was thrilled about the changes going on and the band had started Saturday Night Band Bonding. This week they were having a movie night, Julie was showing them some of the classics they’d missed since 1995. They’d put a projector in the studio and rearranged the furniture to make a mattress comfy pile in the center.

Alex had arguably claimed the center since he was the one who would be most invested in the movies and paying the most attention. Which brought protests from Reggie who settled on his left, but they were weak protests since he almost always fell asleep whenever they put on a movie. Julie ended up settled to Alex’s right, she’d seen all of these and was excited to watch her boys’ faces light up. Luke was running late for whatever reason, which was unfortunate for him since his friends had decided to take up most of the cuddly surfaces.

Luke poofed in and pouted at the sight. “Hey! Where’s my spot?”

The three just looked up at him and laughed. “Guess you shouldn’t have been late!”

Luke walked up to Reggie nudging him a little with his foot and giving him his best puppy eyes. Reggie stared into his face for a second before shaking his head and curling up deeper into his spot. “Not a chance dude.”

Luke started to walk over to Alex but was stopped short when Alex called out, “Has it ever worked before?” Luke sighed and turned his gaze to Julie. Alex chuckled at the obvious resignation. Both Reggie and Alex glanced over to Julie, interested to see how this was going to turn out.

“Molina, you won’t leave me without a spot, will you?” His voice was soft, and he was giving her a little grin. Trying to charm her, but also almost a little afraid of succeeding. “You won’t turn me away right Jules?”

Julie knew she was done for the second he turned his sights on her, but she thought she could make him work for it a little. However, at the soft sound of his nickname for her she gave in scooching down so he could sit at the top of the spot she claimed. It wasn’t a lot of space, but she gave him a small smirk and said “Take it or leave it.” She followed it up with a serious glare and added “Just don’t take my spot”.

His smile lit up the room as he sat cross-legged near her head. Alex and Reggie turned back to face the screen with small smiles since they knew, he would take whatever Julie would give him. Soon the movie started, and they all settled in for their marathon.

Julie felt a little jittery at first with the cute boy she had a crush on sitting so close to her, but as she became more engaged in the movie and how her band lit up at the sight of HSM she relaxed. At some point she needed to find a new spot in her soft things pile and ended up stretching her arms above her head. She’d momentarily forgotten Luke was there until her hands hit his knees and she blushed before pulling her hands back towards her head. That little touch had sent a surprisingly sharp shockwave through her and she was desperate to pretend she was nonchalant. 

A few minutes passed before she even knew he realized what happened, but slowly his hands moved from his lap to toy with hair a little bit. Running his fingers through it. She could feel herself relaxing even as her heart tensed. It felt nice and it took everything in her to keep her gaze on the movie and not search out his eyes.

It was about halfway through the movie and his soft movements through her hair had lulled her into a sense of peace. Slowly his hands traveled from moving through her hair to toying with her fingertips and she felt her sharp intake of breath. She still stubbornly watched the screen as if, if she called attention to what he was doing she would spook him. Her heart was pounding, and she never knew she could feel so much in just her fingertips. He was tracing up and down her fingers to her palm and then moving her fingers around. She could feel the goosebumps moving up and down her arms. Hesitantly, she started moving her fingertips back as if it was her body’s natural response. 

She kept on, getting slightly more confident as her fingers started pressing against his and tracing back as his hands got closer. She still hadn’t looked at him, but she swore she could tell exactly which smile he was using. At one point it was almost like their fingers were playfighting and she was working hard at stifling her giggles when suddenly his finger hooked onto one of her own. This time though, he didn’t let go. It was like a mini version of handholding and she could’ve sworn her blush was visible from space.

Slowly she glanced upwards only to be caught in his eyes. He’d been staring at her and his eyes were warm, filled with awe and light and maybe a little surprise. She watched his small smile spread and his hands moved to capture more of her fingers, never losing eye contact as he did so. She returned the smile with just as much awe and surprise, but also maybe a little nervousness. He seemed to sense it, smiling even bigger before turning his attention back to the movie. She glanced back at the movie and felt him gently pulling her hands into his lap and moving so there was no question anymore about whether or not they were holding hands.

They spent the rest of the movie like that until the lights came on to find the controller and put on the second movie. They both had jerked apart with sheepish smiles attempting to keep whatever just happened for themselves without their band mates finding out. As Julie got up to switch out the movie, she watched Luke’s smile turn into something more devious and she made sure to remind him- “Don’t take my spot.”

He just grinned at her and waited until her back was turned before scooching down a little and repositioning, so his legs were open in a V rather than crossed. Julie turned around and gave him a hard look, not buying his innocent act for a second. At the sight of her look he let out a low chuckle and responded, “Just getting more comfortable, is this okay?” She nodded and moved to lay back down in her spot except this time between his legs.

The lights went out and the movie started. She wondered if he would reach for her hands again, but she hadn’t put them back towards her hair. Should she move them up so they were more within his reach and available? But what if he didn’t grab them again? She started to squirm as her thoughts jumbled and she ended up rolling over to her side and using his leg as a pillow. It was… surprisingly comfortable. And she scooched a little bit up toward him so she could find a comfier spot on his leg for her head. She glanced at him briefly, discovering it was his turn to blush and stubbornly stare at the movie.

A silent giggle escaped her as she moved her hand to wrap around his leg, near her face. She was settled in quite comfortable with the new arrangement when she felt one of his hands back in her hair. This time she managed to keep her breathing steady although she could’ve sworn time stopped for a brief moment when he did that. He gently pushed a curl behind her ear before he traced his fingers down her back. Softly his fingers started tracing circles and rubbing up and down her back and she could feel the small hum in her chest as her body relaxed into his touch.

Somehow, she felt more than heard his small chuckle at her response and soon his other hand had found the one on his leg and was squeezing it in an attempt to convey how comfortable he found their arrangement too. Julie could tell he was gazing at her and she looked up to give him a small smile and a squeeze of his hand back before returning her attention to the movie.

As the movie progressed Julie scooched deeper and deeper into Luke. It was instinctual more than intentional, and she hadn’t realized just how close she’d gotten until her head was literally in his lap and he could nearly lean over and whisper comments about the movie in her ear. Which he did. 

Luke marveled at his luck as the girl he adored kept moving closer and closer to him and slowly his hands had moved until they were clasped together at her waist, wrapping her up entirely with him. The movie was long forgotten as he soaked himself in her touch and the warmth building in his chest as he watched her go through all the emotions that were stirring inside him. He never wanted to let go of this beautiful magical girl that he couldn’t help but watch and admire.

His bandmates had been shooting him knowing glances and smiles ever since they caught him playing with her hair during the first movie. They would be teasing him so much later, but he figured holding this precious angel in his arms was well worth whatever was coming. As she scooched closer though, he started getting hints of jealousy in the boys’ eyes. They were so tactile, and it wasn’t fair that Luke was getting special Julie cuddles, he guessed. Since the start of the second movie the two had moved into their typical cuddle pile wrapping legs and arms around each other.

It was nearing the end of the movie when Julie started to drift off into sleep. She was warm and comfortable while wrapped in Luke’s arms and the weight of the world didn’t seem so heavy. A quick glance at her other bandmates revealed their cuddle pile and while she was perfectly content to be caged in by Luke, she still wanted all her boys. Slowly she reached out her arm so she could lightly tug on Alex’s shirt. He was just out of reach and that was all she could manage. Alex’s eyes quickly glanced down to the small hand gripping his shirt as if he might vanish and chuckled before shifting Reggie and his cuddle pile a little closer. Reggie reached out and grabbed Julie’s hand and placed it on Alex’s stomach while Alex reached out so he could be in contact with Julie.

Luke shot a grumpy pout at the two before hugging Julie tighter and whispering in her ear, teasing her lightly “Am I not enough for you Julie?” hearing the playfulness in his tone she shot him a sleepy look and said “jealous?” His eyes lit a little at that as he remembered Nick, but jealous of his brothers? Of his band? “Nah” he whispered back at her.

The movie ended soon after their little conversation and despite the fact that she was more asleep than awake Julie insisted on putting the third movie on. After a puppy dog look of her own the boys agreed and Luke stood up to put the movie on. He slowly shifted out from under Julie, melting a little at her grumbling protests. When he returned though he discovered Julie curled up into Alex’s side, his arm wrapped around her and her arm wrapped across Alex and Reggie.

He smiled at the sight of his three favorite people in the world all wrapped up in a contented ball of limbs and warmth. Sinking down into the spot Julie vacated, he scooched closer to curl up behind her, burying his head in her curls. At this point, he wasn’t even sure Julie was awake, but much to his surprise he discovered she was. At the feel of him behind her, she rolled over still wrapped in Alex’s arm but leaning into Luke and entangling her limbs in his.

Everything in him was happy. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so peaceful and content and a quick glance at his boys let him know they felt the same. Luke could feel Julie’s breath on his neck as she tucked her head under his, using one of his arms as a pillow. He let that hand reach out to Alex, wanting to be connected with his boys too. Alex’s arm stay curled around Julie’s front and Luke’s other arm went to wrap around her back. He traced circles there until Reggie’s fingers found his and they linked up still pressed against Julie’s back. The band was all connected like one big spider web.

They finished the remainder of the movie like that, frequently unable to tell where one of them ended and the other began. It was perfect they all thought until the end credits rolled and Julie’s eyes wrenched themselves open. She was glaring at Luke, but not with any real heat behind it. “Wait a second.” She exclaimed. “You stole my spot!”

Luke sputtered at the accusation, “But you- and cuddles- and really?” He was so busy attempting to explain how it really wasn’t his fault that he missed the pillow coming at it him until it hit him in the face. “Oh it’s on Molina.” A pillow fight ensued between Julie and Luke with him winning until Alex and Reggie came to her defense. It was quickly a free for all once again however, and probably would’ve continued on for much longer except Luke accidentally sent a pillow flying. It knocked all the DVD case off the table and narrowly missed the projector.  
Julie sighed. “This is why we can’t have nice things.” She managed to get out before collapsing into a fit of giggles. Luke looked sheepish at his error, tossing his weapon aside and lying beside Julie before dissolving into giggles himself. The other two soon joined and upon resuming their cuddle pile, Julie once again drifted back into sleep. They boys snuggled in closer, vowing to protect her and adore her as they settled in for the rest of the night.


End file.
